Invisible, but real
The quality of life of multiple sclerosis and oncology patients is severely affected by fatigue: a symptom that constrains patients in every context of their realities.
If a healthy person starts the day with 10 blocks of energy, I start the day with 5 blocks.
— Person with multiple sclerosis
3 things you need to know
Impactful
It can affect patients both physically and mentally, it can be disease-related or a consequence of treatments such as chemotherapy or immunotherapy.
Recurrent
It is a common, recurrent and unpredictable symptom, giving a sense of exhaustion that is not related to a particular event or effort done by the person experiencing it.
Invisible
It is an invisible symptom, as people surrounding the patients, and society, perceive fatigue as a minor issue, although it strongly affect the quality of life.
Mental fatigue
Mental fatigue is defined as a slowing in mental ability during the performance of repeated cognitive tasks. This means that patients struggle to keep mental focus for long periods, and they struggle to speak and think clearly. Mental fatigue strongly impacts how patients face job-related tasks and how they approach socialization with others.
"I wanted to say the word traffic-light but my mind spoke the word red."
— Patient interview
Physical fatigue
Physical fatigue is defined as the loss of the maximal capacity to generate force during exercise. As a result, patients not only struggle to carry out daily tasks such as house chores or physical activities, but they also have to stop doing the things they love.
"It’s difficult to tell your child that you need to sleep when he wants to play with his mom"
— Patient interview